Slip
by Rodney'sAngel
Summary: A one-shot during New Moon just after Jasper lunges at Bella. I made it as cannon as is possible for me, please forgive me if it slips in places. Some genuine brotherly, non-romantic fluff between J/E. Please review!


A/N: just a quick one shot that is Cullen sibling centric. Right now it is a one-shot, but I'm open to another chapter if people review.

Edward was barely aware of the trees as he rushed by them. He slowed to a walk when his sensitive ears picked up some of the thoughts that were running through his siblings' minds. Emmett and Rose were close by, but respectfully out of hearing distance. Alice was with Jasper, but not physically close at the moment. She was distressed. "Stop it, Jasper," Alice pleaded. Edward heard a loud crunch as one of them broke a tree. He didn't know which had done it because neither of his siblings were calm enough for rational thought. He was just getting worried snippets from Alice, and Jasper's mind was in so much chaos that Edward couldn't stand to be near it. As he approached he saw the carcasses of two full-grown grizzlies that were drained of blood, as well as a deer. From the scent he knew that Jasper had eaten the grizzlies and Alice had eaten the deer. Edward shot out a hand, grabbed a rabbit from behind a rock and fed himself. It was also an easy way to alert his siblings to his presence.

Alice hurried to Edward's side. "How's Bella?" "She'll be fine. Carlisle is stitching her up. You know he's genuinely gifted when it comes to comforting," Edward answered. Jasper had stilled his frantic movements only long enough to hear the answer to his wife's question. Now he went back to what he was doing: destroying the majority of what was in front of him and injuring himself in the process. "Jasper, please." Alice had venom tears streaking down her cheeks. Jasper stopped. He didn't want Alice to cry. She walked to him and kissed his lips. Then she went back to Edward and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Call if you need any of us," she said quietly before disappearing into the trees. Edward waited until she had met with Rose and Emmett, out of hearing distance. Jasper's thoughts were a little more focused now. Actually, he was concentrating on one. Edward listened to the single word that repeated itself: submit. Jasper was coaching himself to accept any attack Edward made against him.

With a sigh, Edward moved casually closer to Jasper. He left about six inches of space between their bodies. Jasper's eyes remained on the ground as his single-word internal chant intensified. Edward knew that no matter what he did in the next second, Jasper was determined to let it happen. There were a million different things that Edward knew he could say, but he found that talk was cheap. Any angry words would be regretted later and any tender ones would be dismissed as hollow. Instead, Edward reached up very slowly and squeezed Jasper's shoulder, rubbing his thumb along Jasper's collarbone. "Rough day, Jazzy?" he teased softly. "Not as rough as Bella's," Jasper growled. "It's better that she moves on anyway. Who was I kidding, Jazz?"

"You love her, Edward. I know that you do. Maybe it does mean letting her go, but that was your decision. What I just did forces your hand," Jasper said. "I know, Jasper. Trust me, it was the push I needed. She will be okay, Jazz. She will move on and it will be fine. Right now, I think we had better run far, but maybe in a decade we can come back to the States. It would be nice to live in the south and see what you're like in your natural element," Edward remarked. It earned him a small smile from Jasper. "You're so calm. The only real emotion I feel from you right now is fear. Urgency and eagerness to leave here for the sake of Bella's safety are present, too, but you have a lid on both of those. No anger," Jasper mused. "Why would I be angry, Jasper? Your dedication to our diet amazes me. While I had my time in which I ate humans, I never started out that way. It was all you ever knew and to be capable of breaking that enough to attend high school is incredible. The paper cut was just asking too much, Jazz. We all know that," Edward said.

"That's the point, Edward. It shouldn't be too much. None of you lunged at her. I'm too much of a weakling to be anything except for the monster that I am," Jasper spat. "You are not weak, Jasper. Most creatures cannot handle their own emotions. You handle yours and many others. What you do every day is amazing. It goes beyond fighting instinct, which is all the rest of us do. I told you when I first started bringing Bella around that you only need tell me when/if it becomes too much for you. There is a difference between being weak and knowing your limits. I respect you for being able to say that there are some days when you just don't feel up to dealing with humans. I have no real right to big brother pride since you're older than me both as a human and a vampire, but that is exactly what I feel every time you resolve to speak to Carlisle about taking a couple of days away. He truly respects you for it, Jasper, especially since the rest of us wouldn't do it." "What do you mean?" asked Jasper.

"Can you honestly picture Rosalie or Emmett going to Carlisle and telling him that they are feeling too homicidal to go to school today? They wouldn't do it, Jazz, and not because they don't feel homicidal. It would mean acknowledging that they aren't as in control as they would like to be and both of them have too much pride for that. And I'm the same way," Edward explained. "You really think they would suck it up and go to school anyway?" "No, Jazz, I think they would ditch school and go have sex somewhere where they can be as noisy as they want. My point was that neither of them would humble themselves to Carlisle, which is the right thing to do if we honestly regard him as our father. If he is going to allow us to make decisions that draw scrutiny the way missing too many days of school without an excuse does, he deserves to hear from us why we are doing it." "And I tell him."

Edward could see that he wasn't getting through to Jasper the way he wanted to. "Look, Jazzy; tonight was bad. It means that things have to change. There is no getting around that. I want you to know that I forgive you and that I know Bella forgives you. No one holds it against you, Jasper. It was a slip and it was harsh, but not nearly as terrible as it could have been. Things will settle down again, I promise. All of that said, the most important thing is that you forgive yourself. You are my brother and I love you. It was an accident and I do not blame you for it. Please do your best to let it go and move on. That's what we all need to do right now," Edward finished. He stepped forward and kissed his brother's porcelain cheek. "I could never hate you, Jasper. None of us will ever hate you." It was a little embarrassing for Jasper to hear Edward voice the silent fear. He closed his eyes for a moment and sighed. Then he crossed the last bit of distance between himself and his brother, letting his rock of a body rest against one of the vampires he loved.


End file.
